Demand for office space remains strong in the Inland Empire. The vacancy rate for all types of offices to smaller complexes, tightened to 9.96 percent at the end of the year, compared with 10.6 percent in 2017. (Courtesy of CBRE)

Three Stater Bros. stores have been refurbished and will host grand reopening ceremonies this month, according to the San Bernardino-based supermarket chain. Stores at 1775 East Lugonia Ave. in Redlands and at 36010 Hidden Springs Road in Wildomar will include a fresh-cut fruit station, handcrafted sushi and an expanded selection of beer and wine. (Courtesy of Stater Bros.)

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Three Stater Bros. stores have been refurbished and will host grand reopening ceremonies this month, according to the San Bernardino-based supermarket chain. Stores at 1775 East Lugonia Ave. in Redlands and at 36010 Hidden Springs Road in Wildomar will include a fresh-cut fruit station, handcrafted sushi and an expanded selection of beer and wine. (Courtesy of Stater Bros.)

Dermody Properties has acquired an approximate 13.53-acre site in the Meridian Business Center in Riverside. Dermody has started construction of a 257,260-square-foot cross dock distribution facility, which the company estimates will be complete in the second quarter of 2019. (Courtesy of Dermody Properties)

Corona-based Tolar Manufacturing, which makes bus benches and shelters for public transportation agencies, has inked another multi-year contract with Dallas Area Rapid Transit. (Courtesy of Tolar)

The newly built Best Western Plus Temecula Wine Country Hotel & Suites has opened for business. The resort is geared toward tourists and features 60 rooms and a host of amenities. The hotel at 41841 Moreno Road is adjacent to Old Town Temecula’s restaurants and shops. It’s owned by Amit Patel and managed by Kalpesh Patel, according to a statement. (Courtesy of Amit Patel)

Last year saw increased demand for office space in the Inland Empire, and the trend is not likely to end in 2019, according to a report from Lee & Associates’ Riverside brokerage.

The vacancy rate for all types of offices, from the downtown buildings usually leased to major corporations to smaller complexes in more remote areas, tightened to 9.96 percent at the end of the year, compared with 10.6 percent in 2017.

Also, a total of about 440,000 square feet of new space is either under construction or being planned in four cities: Riverside, Ontario, Corona and Moreno Valley. Corona has 165,500 square feet planned for construction, the largest of the four.

Lee & Associates anticipates government offices and healthcare users will be the most interested in this space. There also has been an uptick in office tenants buying their building, the report found.

Eight years ago, when the Inland Empire was struggling to recover from the Great Recession, there was one office building being built in the entire two-county area, a six-story tower in downtown Riverside. In the spring of 2011, the vacancy rate was 24.2 percent.

Part of the popularity of the 2018 Inland market comes from comparably cheaper rates.

“The upswing of activity in Orange and Los Angeles counties increasingly benefits the Inland Empire office market, with lower average rental rates for well-located buildings,” Caroline Payan, Lee & Associates’ director of marketing and research, wrote in the report.

There is interest in a variety of Inland office properties. Class A buildings, usually centrally located towers with high-atrium lobbies and other amenities, showed lower vacancy rates and higher absorption.

But those numbers were also solid for Class C properties, small buildings usually on the outskirts of cities. That suggests job growth among business services categories, such as financial advisors and accountants, as well as independent, medical professionals.

Refurbished Stater stores stage reopenings

Three Stater Bros. locations that have been refurbished will hold grand reopening ceremonies this month, with new features for shoppers in all three, according to the San Bernardino-based supermarket chain.

Inland Empire stores at 1775 East Lugonia Ave. in Redlands and 36010 Hidden Springs Road in Wildomar will include a fresh-cut fruit station, handcrafted sushi and an expanded selection of beer and wine. A third store, at 13589 Poway Road in San Diego County, will feature the same updates.

The stores also will have energy-efficient LED lighting and new wood laminate flooring.

Additionally, Stater Bros will present donations to local nonprofit groups at each of the stores.

The stores remain open with normal hours in the walk-up days to the reopening ceremonies.

Dermody buys Riverside warehouse

Dermody Partners, a Reno-based developer that specializes in logistics properties, has acquired a building in Riverside’s Meridian Busines Center area that is currently under construction.

The 257,260-square-foot building, which will be called LogistiCenter at Park Meridian, is scheduled for completion in the second quarter of 2019. The site is a 13.53-acre plot near Interstate 215.

Neither the seller nor the sale price was disclosed in the statement.

Cushman and Wakefield represented both sides in the deal.

Corona medical building sold

Corona Main Medical Plaza, a 31,803-square-foot office building in the city’s medical corridor, has been sold for $17.2 million, according to brokerage NAI Capital.

The building, at 2250 South Main St., is 100 percent leased. The buyer was Global Medical REIT, a publicly traded company. The sellers were RSS Moscoso and Circle City Medical Properties.

NAI Capital represented the seller in the transaction.

Temecula hotel opens

The newly built Best Western Plus Temecula Wine Country Hotel & Suites has opened for business.

The resort is geared toward tourists and features 60 rooms and a host of amenities.

The hotel at 41841 Moreno Road is adjacent to Old Town Temecula’s restaurants and shops. It’s owned by Amit Patel and managed by Kalpesh Patel, according to a statement.

Bob’s Discount Furniture opens

The President’s Day weekend is the setting for an extended grand opening ceremony for Bob’s Discount Furniture in Ontario.

The festivities, which were spread over several days, include street fairs, clowns and face-painting. Also, Bob’s Discount Furniture also marked the occasion by making a $5,000 donation to area schools.

Corona-based Tolar Manufacturing, which makes bus benches and shelters for public transportation agencies, has inked its third consecutive multi-year contract with Dallas Area Rapid Transit.

The $4 million contract has Tolar supplying and installing transit shelters and solar solutions that power LED illumination, updated transit information and security devices.

The Dallas transportation agency has been a Tolar customer for 11 years.

Ontario’s postal operations shift

The U.S. Postal Service will shift its letter-carrier operations from its downtown station 1.7 miles away to the city’s main post office on March 16.

The main post office for Ontario is at 1555 East Holt Blvd. Customers who find notices in the mailboxes about packages that need to be picked up can continue picking them up at the downtown station, 123 West Holt Blvd., until March 15.

No other changes, including the sale of stamps and postal boxes, are planned.

Indian Wells clubhouse finished

The renovation of the clubhouse at the Reserve Club, a golf facility and luxury lifestyle club in Indian Wells, has been completed. The project took more than a year to complete, at a cost of $10 million.

The redesign of the 30,000-square-foot Tuscan-style facility includes a full renovation for the interior, new dining and entertainment spaces and architectural enhancements.

Status Update is compiled by Inland Empire business reporter Jack Katzanek and edited by Business Editor Samantha Gowen. Submit items to jkatzanek@scng.com or sgowen@scng.com. High-resolution images also can be submitted. Allow at least one week for publication. Items are edited for length and clarity.